German Politics in 1924-1929

German politics in 1924-1929, was made up:

• Coalitions
• President Hindenburg
• Liberal Parties
• The SPD
• The Centre Party
• The DNVP
• Limitations of the political system.

The Coalitions that were workable were limited:

• Coalitions were one of the problems created by proportional representation. 
• It was impossible for a coalition to be formed by the SPD and DNVP because they were completely different parties, on different ends of the spectrum:
  • The SPD wanted democracy, whereas the DNVP rejected the Weimar Republic.
• The KPD remained isolated. 
• Right-centre coalitions tended to agree on domestic issues. 
  • However, they disagreed on foreign affairs. 
• Whereas, broad coalitions, such as the SPD, DDP and DVP, tended to agree on foreign affairs.
  • However, they disagreed on domestic issues, making things difficult. 
• The thought of democratic govts gaining stability was a very little chance of coming true. 
• Only 2 coalitions managed majorities. 
• The longest lasting coalition govt, only lasted 21 months. 

President Hindenburg became president following the unexpected death of Ebert in 1925. This is when political problems were created:

• The election was close with 3 candidates, who didn't reach a majority vote. 
• Despite this, Hindenburg was elected with 48% of the vote. 
  • (Wilhelm Marx only recieved 45%, whilst Ernst Thalmann only recieved 6%).
• There was no immediate move to the right, even though Hindenburg was part of the DNVP. 
• He showed loyalty to the constitution. 
• However, he had a lack of sympathy for the values of the Republic.
• He also preferred to exclude the SPD. 

Liberal Parties did not hold strong positions in German Politics:

• The DDP and DVP joined all coalitions, and the DVP leader (STRESEMAN) proved to be the only capable Chancellor. 
• However, their share of the vote was halved since 1920. 
• They collapsed after 1930 because:
  • Both the DVP and DDP were internally divided. 
  • The DDP lacked clear leadership. 

The Social Democrat Party (SPD) remained:

• the largest party in the Reichstag until 1932. 
• Some members of the SPD feared that their principles would be weakened by joining coalitions. 
• However, the party was hindered by the argument between committed and extreme left wing socialists, and the moderate gradual reformists.
• As a result, the SPD did not join any coalitions that would weaken their power. 

The Centre Party (Catholic):

• It provided most of the leadership within Weimar. 
• It participated in all coalitions.
• However, the party's support was restricted to traditional Catholic areas, which lead to internal divides. 
• They were led by left wingers, Matthias Erzberger and Josef Wirth, in the early years. 
• This changed in the 1920s, as they decisively moved to the right.
• As a result, they helped to appeal to more conservation coalitions. 

The DNVP:

• Had been totally against the Weimar Republic, since 1919. 
• They also refused to take part in govt, despite the 103 seats they had in the Reichstag. 
• However, after the 1923 crisis, their aim of restoring right wing govt was decreasing. 
• As a result, they joined coalitions in 1925-1927. 
• However, their policies were not popular with all their internal groups.
• For example, the extreme right wingers asserted their influence. 
• This led to the group reverting back to it's programme of total opposition. 
• In addition, the DNVP worked closely with the Nazis around this time. 

The political system in Germany, however, had its limitations:

• It failed to make any progress and coped as best as it could. 
• There were growing cynicism towards politics was shown by people towards party politics. 
• In the 1920s, there was a decline in voter turnout. 
• There was an increase in unstable and extreme fringe-parties. 
• Parties did not cooperate well.